


We Move Lightly

by Urby



Series: Return to Innocence [2]
Category: Fire Emblem: If | Fire Emblem: Fates
Genre: F/M, Fluff, Not Beta Read, Transformation
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-04-29
Updated: 2017-04-29
Packaged: 2018-10-25 11:59:49
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,605
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/10763838
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Urby/pseuds/Urby
Summary: Azura suggests that Corrin work on controlling his nervous draconic transformation habit at a nearby lake.





	We Move Lightly

**Author's Note:**

> This is meant to be a continuation of my previous fic _Save This Moment_. This was supposed to be lighthearted and fun but then it got sad at the end. oops.
> 
> I would like to apologize again for any potential mischaracterizations, because I have never actually played Fates - I just love these two a lot.

"Perhaps meeting in your room is what's overexciting you," Azura said. "Next time, let's meet somewhere that doesn't have such intimate associations."

When she said that, Corrin had agreed, thinking it was a solid suggestion. But as time passed, he was getting less and less sure. They were so very busy, and it was so hard to find time to think of a new place to be, especially if that place had to be away from others. Most of his favorite places were ones where he could see others, to make sure he wasn't alone...

It was when he was wandering idly, looking for her, that he realized that if anyone knew how to get away from things for a little while, it was Azura. There she was, at a secluded body of water, dancing on its bank and holding her dress so that only her bare feet grazed the water. She sang to the clear sky above her, as if testing the limits of her voice. He watched her, transfixed, feeling like he was trespassing somehow. And yet, when she turned and saw him, there was no surprise or shock in her features - just an easy smile, like she had been waiting for him.

"Hello, Corrin," she called out. "Am I needed anywhere?"

He didn't want to shout after her, so he approached, watching with fondness as her smile grew. He smiled back. "No, I think we should stay here for a while."

"Just the two of us?"

"If that's okay with you."

"I am perfectly fine with that," Azura declared as she gathered up her dress. She had a seat at the lake's edge, and he joined her nearby. The two of them watched the sunlight dancing on the water for a while.

"I had a dream about you," Corrin said.

Her smile softened. "Did you?"

"Yeah! I think about you a lot!"

She covered a charmed chuckle with a hand. "What was your dream about?"

He splashed the water a bit with his feet and watched the ripples his movement made. "I was friends with someone who was a lot like me...she had a dragon form and a Yato, but she had long hair and black armor. Not just like Nohrian armor, though...it had gold on it, too..."

"Do you think she was supposed to be you, if you were a woman?"

"Um! She told me her name, but I can't remember what it was," he said, biting his lower lip. "We were good friends though! We lived together and took care of each other. We were looking for someone together...someone we hadn't met yet, but we knew somehow. We weren't able to find her before the dream ended, though..."

Azura tipped her head at him. Then, chancing a little smile, she said, "Didn't you say this dream was about me?"

"Because we were looking for you!" Corrin said. "In my dream, you weren't there, but we spent the whole dream looking!"

Azura laughed aloud, bringing her other hand to cover her mouth this time. He smiled at her. It really was a sweet laugh...he couldn't imagine tiring of it. She laid her head on his shoulder, closing her eyes.

Heat crawled into his face. She'd never initiated displays of affection like this...she looked so comfortable! And...beautiful! She was so close! And...

It was too late. His ears squirmed above his head, and he had to move his head away from her so he didn't jab her with his growing crest.

She made a wondering noise at that and looked up. Her eyes widened when she noticed his transformation. "Corrin?"

He swallowed. His tail squirmed behind him. Hopefully she was distracted by that and wouldn't notice the ridiculous full-face flush of his.

She sat back, a helpless smile on her face. "I must have quite the effect on your composure," she said.

"I was doing fine before!" he said, ashamed of how squeaky his voice sounded.

Azura laid a hand on his, stroking the back of his fingers until he calmed down. He couldn't rein back his draconic features, though. His ears continued to flail behind his head.

"Would it help," she began, words slow and even, "if you allowed yourself to transform fully into dragon form?"

Corrin frowned. "I wouldn't be able to do much with you then."

"Well, you aren't doing much now," she said plainly, pushing on his antlers with a finger. He sighed. "You might need an outlet for your nervous energy."

He stared at his feet. Even those had transformed, becoming clawed and dark.

"I don't know," he said finally. "I wish I didn't do this, honest! I don't want to do this," he said, flexing his toes, which had become slightly long, but not quite finger-like.

"It's in your nature. Maybe it can't be stopped," she said. "Only helped."

Corrin sighed again. Azura studied him for a moment, then laid her head back on his shoulder. He took a deep breath and stayed steady.

"Corrin," she said, which sounded like an opener to a question.

"Hmm?"

"Do you think it would harm you to transform completely into a dragon?"

His ears curled. "Do you really want me to try?"

"Perhaps the effort of controlling the dragon will calm you. It would let you get used to it," she said.

Corrin considered this silently. He felt decently in control of himself, but there was a pit of doubt in his belly. Part of it was his excitement, he knew, but it was also something dark. "I've never...tried to become the dragon without reason."

"Is learning more about yourself and achieving calm _without reason_?"

He bunched his shoulders close to his body. He tried to answer her, but his throat was thick.

She noticed his hesitation and moved to hold his arm in a gesture of support. "I'm here," she said. "I can sing for you, if you're worried."

"I do like it when you sing," he said. She gave him a small smile. "But, I...I don't think it would be necessary. I'll give it a try."

He brought himself to a stand. She pushed herself up and stepped into the shallows of the lake to give him space. He hunched over, feeling his body expanding and the dragon pushing out. It was...like a slow pop, like tearing down a curtain that was hung from very high up.

He spread his wings, feeling the power coursing through his limbs and scales. Azura watched him calmly, a hand at her neck. It was...somehow pleasant and amusing to look _down_ at her. He moved towards her, thrumming softly.

"How do you feel?" she asked.

Corrin realized he could not speak. The bone-like jaw dropped, but when he pushed noise out of his throat, it came out as a purring growl.

She tipped her head, considering the response he made. Then, she asked, "Do you want to spend time with me?"

He bobbed his head up and down. This answer seemed to please her, bringing a smile to her face, but then she turned to walk further into the water. He made a squeaking cry at that.

"Is the mighty dragon afraid of a little bit of water?" Azura teased, wading further out. Corrin shifted his weight on his limbs, digits scraping against his palms. He made a weak _raar_ at her retreating form, which made her turn around. Her expression was cool. "Corrin. Look. The water this far out isn't deep. It wouldn't get past your shoulders."

He lowered his head, keeping his gaze on her. Her expression didn't change. After about a minute, he straightened his neck and trod into the lake.

"Good boy!" she said, smiling and holding her hands out. His ears flailed, and he leaned towards her and _huffed_. No current of air stirred her hair, but she understood the gesture. "Forgive me, Corrin. I'm just playing."

He brought his head down so he could bump his face against her body. She giggled, giving him a little bump back. Sensing a challenge, he thrummed and pushed against her, feeling her feet dragging against the silt. Something below her must have crumbled under her weight, because she yelped, clasping the nearest thing to steady herself, which turned out to be one of his ears. He yowled and flailed his head, making her lose her balance. Before his shaking could hurt her, she let go of him and allowed herself to fall into the water.

 _Oh, no!_ was a clear thought that crossed his mind. Later, he would be able to think back at that moment to be the first time he used words to express his thoughts as a dragon, but at the moment, all he could focus on was trying to help Azura. She seemed a bit surprised, but unhurt, and was able to tread water. She reassured him with a gentle, hesitant pat on his head.

"Be careful. You're stronger than you know," she said, but there was no hint of scolding in her voice. She seemed undisturbed by the fact that her hair and her outfit were dripping wet. He nuzzled her in an apologetic fashion and straightened.

The water made her clothes cling to her body. He could see the paleness of her skin. Her skin said it was cold - there were slight goosebumps on her arms and her nipples showed through the fabric of both her dress and her smallclothes. Still, she didn't seem bothered by any of it. She treaded water with an easy smile.

It occurred to him that he was staring at her chest. There was so much to look at...! The fridge of her dress; the white, nearly invisible fabric; the soft curve of her breasts...his ears flailed as he blinked hard. When he opened his eyes, he tried to focus on her necklace, gleaming in stark contrast to the pale, pale, white skin and fabric.

The next thing that occurred to him was that she wouldn't be able to tell where his gaze was, because his eyes were hidden under the featureless grey face mask. He could stare at any part of her, and she wouldn't know!

...Or maybe she could, because her expression fell. She turned her body away, so that her shoulder faced him.

"Corrin? Is something wrong?"

He shook his head mutely.

She stared at him for a moment, then started to swim around him. "It's a bit hot today, don't you think?"

He watched her - the graceful movement of her arms and legs, the way her hair and veil trailed in the water - swiveling his neck when she slipped behind him. She tapped his flank.

"I think it would do you some good to swim."

Corrin rumbled, tail arcing from side to side over his body. He hadn't attempted very much in this form, and he wasn't confident enough in his limbs not to make an absolute fool of himself if he went into deeper waters.

"No? I suppose I'll do some diving on my own, then," she said, wading towards the center of the lake. He _raared_ at her, taking a step towards her. The silt at the bottom of the lake scattered under his weight, and he shied away from it, spooking himself back to the more solid shallows.

She glanced over his shoulder in what seemed like a taunting manner, then slipped down into the water.

He waited. He could not see her. His back crawled, making his wings flex. His body screamed at him to _go_ , and...he went, tromping into the waters. He tucked his wings close to his body and rocketed through the water using his powerful tail.

The water was clear to his sight, but the speed at which he moved made things difficult to examine. He caught glimpses of her as he darted about, feeling the liquid smoothness of the water. It was cooling and his body allowed him all sorts of movement and speed. He loved it, loved it with a fierce, primal joy, loved the water and the sunshine piercing through it, loved the way it tossed his ears, loved the sound of air bubbles scattering as he swam. He rolled, he flew, he tore through the lake.

A sweet laughter, touched with surprise and a little bit of thrill, reached his ears. Azura...she was of the water, too, in a way. He loved her more than this water. He wanted nothing more than to hug her. He launched himself with a swipe of his tail. He was getting faster the smaller he got.

"Corrin! What are you --" was all she could manage before she was pounced upon by a joyous half-dragon. The yelp she made was quickly covered by his lips as he showered her with kisses. She laughed between breaths at his affectionate display.

"Azura!" he beamed, embracing her. His tail wagged behind him. "I love swimming! I love water!"

"I'm glad!" she said, returning the embrace while trying to control her laughter. "You seem so happy!"

"I love you, Azura!" he exclaimed, nuzzling her. "Let's get married!"

Her chuckling stopped with an abrupt and loud "Ah," and then she started coughing.

His thoughts raced. A cold horror crawled up his throat. _Did I just...oh, no! No! I didn't want to ask her like this! I didn't even ask her! Damn it!_ Damn _it!_

"Azura, I'm sorry," he said, releasing her. She had a hand to her chest while the other one clung to his shoulder. "Are you alright?"

"I swallowed down the wrong -- give me..." it took her a moment to stop coughing, and another moment to regain her composure, but she didn't meet his gaze when her breathing had evened out. His hands were nervous without something to hold, but he wasn't sure if he should touch her.

"Did I upset you?" he asked softly.

Azura hesitated, and that moment of silence made Corrin's heart fall into the pit of his stomach. It was colder than any rejection she could ever give voice to.

"We should head back," she said. She started wringing her dress of water. "We should get ready for tomorrow."

His body felt so heavy he wondered if his wings and tail would simply fall off his body. She looked up at him - finally - and, noticing his expression, stepped towards him.

"Corrin --"

"I'm sorry about what I said earlier. I wasn't thinking," he said, shaking his head before she could say anything else.

Her expression fell. Then, she leaned up to kiss his cheek, lingering there after her lips had lifted away. His fingers flexed, itching for contact. Finally, he laid them, feather-light, on her back.

"Let's talk about...that...some other time," she said. He wasn't sure what sort of conversation that would be, but he nodded.

Azura kept her hands against her body, but she tucked her face against his neck and shoulder. Corrin wrapped his tail around her, and she nuzzled him in response.

Something was...troubling her, and while he ached to see her that way, he also knew that he must have played a part in it. Sure, some of their companions had married, and some of their children bolstered their ranks, but now that he saw her reaction to his thoughtless suggestion...

"You want to talk about...what I said? Later?"

"I do," she said into his shoulder.

"Okay. Thank you."

The two of them held each other until the warm sun dried their clothes and Corrin was able to draw the dragon back into his body.

**Author's Note:**

> I pulled Azura in Heroes yesterday and I'm still swooning (she has so many corrins to hug and spend time with, aaaah) so I decided to work on this instead of my school projects.
> 
> Also, I couldn't help but add a reference to _Cascade_ here, even if the "Azura" they are looking for hasn't been mentioned yet. I guess _Love is Infinite_ isn't my own series with timeline/continuity confusion.


End file.
